The synodal mission marches on, but sin remains left behind
On June 9th the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops released the latest Instrumentum laboris. The document addresses how to be a missionary synodal church. Missions, therefore, is at the heart of the document and shapes its purpose. The contents of the document deserve their own attention, but now we want to draw attention to a question asked by a journalist at a press conference that discussed the Instrumentum laboris (the question is asked at the 1’11” mark). The question was asked by Cristina Caricato of TV 2000 and was directed to the panel which consisted of key cardinals and figures in the synodal Church. Caricato asked why the word “sin” does not appear in the entirety of the Instrumentum laboris. Was it an intentional omission, or just by happenstance that it doesn’t appear?
This is an excellent question. If the aim of the document is to discuss being a missionary synodal Church, then one would expect to find the word “sin” present throughout. This of course is because the gospel message of the Bible makes no sense whatsoever apart from sin. The gospel is good news because it is an answer to the devastation and death caused by sin. The coming of Jesus Christ and his death on the cross are futile if sin is absent. Sin is a key ingredient to the gospel message. Just like it is impossible to produce a loaf of bread without flour, it is not possible to arrive at the gospel apart from sin. You can make something without sin, but it is not the biblical gospel. So, if the synodal Church intends on being missionary, it would seem that sin should not only be present, but it ought to be prominent. Yet the word does not appear once. Caricato was right to point this out. Sin is key to being missionary.
The total absence of sin from the Instrumentum laboris speaks volumes concerning the Roman Catholic Church’s current understanding of synodality and mission. Any attempt to justify its absence is white noise. Biblically speaking, there is no justifiable reason whatsoever to write extensively on being missionary and never mention sin once. It demonstrates with clarity that the mission of the Synodal Church is not the gospel mission of the Bible. The entire Bible is a response to sin, culminating in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The synodal mission, however, leaves sin behind while also declaring that the Holy Spirit is its principal guide. It cannot, however, be the Holy Spirit of the Bible, for the first thing the Holy Spirit does is convicts of sin (John 16:8).
Three brief responses were offered to Caricato. The first came from Cardinal Hollerich who acknowledged that we are all sinners. He also noted that it was not their job to discuss what words should be used and what words ought not to be used, which of course is interesting seeing that the document is full of words, each chosen for a reason. Much can be inferred by the words that are chosen and by those that are omitted, especially in a document of importance such as the Instrumentum laboris.
The second response came from Monsignor Riccardo Battocchio, who is Special Secretary of the Assembly of Bishops and a key figure in the Synodal Church. Battocchio noted that while the word “sin” does not appear, the word “salvation” does. The obvious remark to Battocchio’s comment is that salvation makes no sense apart from sin. If sin is absent, what kind of salvation are we talking about? Salvation from what? It is also worth noting that Battocchio informed Caricato that Instrumentum laboris is not a theological work, but is instead a guide on how to be the synodal Church. But if mission is at the heart of the document, how is it not a theological work? Mission is by nature theological. To say that it is not a theological work while speaking of mission says much about synodality. The last response, which was also the briefest, came from Cardinal Grech who agreed with his colleagues and added that there were plans being discussed amongst his peers to organize a penitential retreat, which is needed seeing that we are all sinners.
To restate a point made earlier, these responses are just white noise. They mean little to nothing, even if they did have any theological depth to them, which they don’t. The complete absence of sin from the Instrumentum laboris, however, speaks volumes. It convincingly reveals that the missionary synodal Church is not interested in sin. If it is not interested in sin, what mission is it pursuing? Synodality and its mission march on, but sin remains left behind, and so therefore does the biblical gospel.